Glass is great, but I have carpal tunnel and a heavy glass contain was literally, a pain to handle. I switched to plastic, have been using the high-end (bar style) Waring for 10 yrs, no clouding, cracking or problems.

I have a $20 Osterizer that I use almost every day. I have used the plastic for over 20 years and love it - glass too heavy!
Ginny

"----I see glass ones and plastic ones, genuine ones and ''fits Oster'' ones, square ones and round ones and ones that are shaped like cloverleaves. Confusing! Confused! ---"

Let's see. What makes a blender work?

You want a blender with a high speed blade, and you want the deference in speed as great as possible between the blade and the liquid. If the blade travels at the same speed as the liquid, you can never blends anything smooth because there will be no impact (chopping) of the particles in the liquid.

Therefore, you want a jar that impedes the free flow of the liquid. To me that means the jar should not be round.

dcarch

So - plastic cloverleaf? We had glass round. I'd like to try something as different as possible from that.

All blender jars are round at the bottom where the blade is.
The movement of the food in a well designed blender is also up and down allowing for all the food to get processed.
I would buy a genuine Oster jar and I prefer glass...somehow seems more wholesome.
Linda C

"----All blender jars are round at the bottom where the blade is. ----"

That may be the case; however, in fluid mechanics, the shape of the vessel nearby impacts the dynamics of movement based on the "Reynolds number" of fluids.

"---The movement of the food in a well designed blender is also up and down allowing for all the food to get processed.--"

Yes. "WELL" designed.

"------- and I prefer glass...somehow seems more wholesome. "

Probably correct. Interestingly, glass is actually not a solid. It is considered a liquid. Glass, very slowly flows and dissolves in water. Old glass panes are actually thicker at the bottom.

dcarch

He said he had an Osterizer....that is a well designed blender.

The purpose of a blender is not only to chop particles but to mix them well and evenly. The shape of the jar has more to do with mixing than chopping. When a blender works properly it pulls unblended food down in the center into the round bottom and the whirling blades and pushes the blended food up the outside of the jar.
I have used blenders with round, square and cloverleaf shaped jars, and it seems that the power of the motor is what determines how well it works.
So in spite of DCarch's muddying the waters with talk of fluid dynamics, my original recommendation stands, a glass jar (even though after 100 or more years the glass may flow to the bottom and not fit the plastic collar) of the design that was originally oart of the blender.
I have had Oster blenders for about 48 years. I burned out the motor on the first one making too big a batch of pesto. This current one is about 25 years old.
Linda C

Posted by lindac "He said he had an Osterizer....that is a well designed blender.---"

Of the 235 reviews of the Osterizer blender, 66 reviewers gave it below a 3 star rating. 49 reviewers gave it a 4 star rating. 5 stars being the top rating.

"---- The purpose of a blender is not only to chop particles but to mix them well and evenly. The shape of the jar has more to do with mixing than chopping. ------"

I apologize for my poor understanding of the English language. I thought the OP is mostly interesting in making smoothies, not to make salsa.

"------When a blender works properly it pulls unblended food down in the center into the round bottom and the whirling blades and pushes the blended food up the outside of the jar. -----"

And that, as I understand, to muddy up the water even more, has mostly to do with the geometry of the blades' hydrodynamic design, just like the propellers for a fan or boat.

"I have used blenders with round, square and cloverleaf shaped jars, and it seems that the power of the motor is what determines how well it works. "

Up to a point, yes.

"So in spite of DCarch's muddying the waters with talk of fluid dynamics, my original recommendation stands, a glass jar (even though after 100 or more years the glass may flow to the bottom and not fit the plastic collar) of the design that was originally oart of the blender. "

Must be it's my meager linguistic aptitude again. I don't think I said glass is no good.

A minder to myself: Going to look for my Muddy Waters LP album for dinner music tonight. Love that song "Got My Mojo Working "

dcarch

Of the 235 reviews of the Osterizer blender, 66 reviewers gave it below a 3 star rating. 49 reviewers gave it a 4 star rating. 5 stars being the top rating.

Both factually incorrect and ambiguous. 66 reviewers gave it below a FOUR star rating. And by saying five stars is the "top" rating do you mean that's be highest it can be rated, or are you admitting that there are more five star ratings than all other ratings combined? (Second place going to four stars.)

Sorry Dr. Mud! ;-) I read your post as implying that it got poorly rated, had a hard time believing it so I had to check for myself.

Anyway John, glass, plastic, I have both. Both leak no matter which side I place the gasket on. Probably no more than a personal preference. Would you prefer it to shatter or crack when you drop it? One thing I'll say for Oster - I've never killed the square metal drive, and that's more than I can say for any rubber drive blender I've ever owned.

Back to making some sauce for sous vide short ribs!

HaHaa!

Go ahead, make my day! ostracize me for calling Osterizer a lousy pile of metal junk.

Below a 3 star or below a 4 star, I can tell you the 66 reviewers did not give it a four star, and 115 did not give it a 5 star.

The fact is, implication is what you read into what I wrote. What I wrote was in response to the classification of "Well designed". I did not classify it as poor design, just not "Well designed." With that kind of reviews, in my book, it is not "Well designed". ( Taking off my Bill Clinton hat now) :-).

Re Leakage: normally the leak is not from the gasket. There is a little rubber "O" ring just below the blades. It gets worn out from friction after a while.

Re rubber drive: Rubber drive is a better mechanical concept. It reduces noise as well as impact shock (softer start) from high-torque motors.

If you run into problems with your short ribs, you can make short rib smoothies in your "Well designed" blender!

dcarch :-)

And your blender is so good that you, ummm, have to make stirring contraptions for it? Or is it not your blender that's crappy, but rather that you have a round jar? Should try an Oster. LOLOL!!!

(All in good fun - and p.s., that's not the video that I was looking for to make a point, but thanks for the obvious material!!!)

Here is a link that might be useful: hmmm

OMG....I try to wash my hands before cooking!

Also as a matter of technique, starting to blend with the softest fruits first, like watermelon and apples then continuing on with the lemon rinds, you might find the stirrer unnecessary.
Next time try an Oster and sent the Hamilton Beech to Good Will.

Posted by foodonastump "------ but rather that you have a round jar? Should try an Oster. LOLOL!!! (All in good fun - and p.s., that's not the video that I was looking for to make a point, but thanks for the obvious material!!"

While I am trying to figure out what point you are trying to make, do take a look at my new thread "This Stirrer Is A Smooth Operator" :-)

Posted by lindac "------Also as a matter of technique, starting to blend with the softest fruits first, like watermelon and apples then continuing on with the lemon rinds, you might find the stirrer unnecessary. ----------------"

Great advice to tell all those expensive makers of high-powered blenders to also provide free life-time watermelons in addition to the stirrers they give you for their blenders.

dcarch

I've had both plastic & glass. The glass seems to be less noisy, esp. if you ever blend any ice. The plastic one I have is all scratched up. The glass is still pristine.

Posted by ci_lantro "---I've had both plastic & glass. The glass seems to be less noisy, esp. if you ever blend any ice. The plastic one I have is all scratched up. The glass is still pristine. "

Yes, glass is quieter. I will not go into the reasons.
Glass is good for another thing for me.

For some smoothies, I would put the glass jar in the freezer first before I use it.

dcarch